This piece by American poet Maya Angelou has long been a favorite of mine. Its discussion of the natural world reminds of the inevitability and "naturalness" of loss but also acknowledges that despite this inevitability, when a large loss does occur, life is still rattled. Beings big and small seem to seek safety and stability when great trees fall. The widespread disruption stands as a parallel to the effects felt by survivors when a significant person in their lives dies. When great souls die, the ecosystems of our minds and our hearts sense the change and wither at least for a period. But the beauty of life is that, just like the natural world, we can eventually recover. New growth springs up, not identical to what was, but beautiful and bustling nonetheless. Without the space and the nourishment of what once stood, this would not be possible. The cycle and continuation of life itself is a testament to what had been; for though great souls die, we can make meaning from the knowledge that they existed and touched our lives. This page has paths:
- 1 2021-04-25T15:31:57-04:00 Emily Mitchell ff4ea107307f7ae7326072957b361b722e43ffd1 Acknowledging Loss: Poetry and Prose Louis Zweig 32 plain 2025-07-07T22:44:15-04:00 Louis Zweig d4b7846919334954a94c81b04cdd8934e7e64539
Contents of this path:
- 1 2019-11-26T03:30:49-05:00 "Love Sorrow" by Mary Oliver, contributed by Anaga Dinesh (2019) 2 plain 2021-04-24T15:46:05-04:00
- 1 2019-11-22T13:50:00-05:00 Two meditations on loss by Leslie Jamison and Paul Harding, contributed by Steve Shennan (TF, 2019) 4 plain 2021-04-24T15:45:26-04:00
- 1 2019-11-26T18:38:15-05:00 Four poems from The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, contributed by Ben Porteous (2019) 4 plain 2021-04-24T15:45:45-04:00
- 1 2019-11-20T20:44:45-05:00 "One Art" by Elizabeth Bishop, contributed by Paul Johnston (TF, 2019) 13 plain 2021-04-24T15:39:43-04:00
- 1 2019-11-22T14:11:19-05:00 "Go in Peace" by Ross Rheingans-Yoo, contributed by Duncan Rheingans-Yoo (2019) 5 plain 2021-04-24T15:40:01-04:00
- 1 2019-11-26T17:30:37-05:00 "The Meadow Mouse" by Theodore Roethke, contributed by Kathleen Coleman (Course Head, 2019) 3 plain 2021-04-24T15:42:42-04:00
- 1 2019-12-02T22:14:40-05:00 "Six of Cups" by and contributed by Midge Scheftel (2019) 4 plain 2021-04-24T15:44:42-04:00
- 1 2020-02-05T02:50:26-05:00 "The Times as It Knows Us" by Allen Barnett, contributed by Colton Carter (2019) 3 plain 2021-04-24T15:44:59-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T15:34:49-04:00 "After the Fire" by Ada Limón, contributed by Esme Benson (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T15:34:49-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T15:54:49-04:00 "Separation" by W.S. Merwin, contributed by Maggie Chiffer (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T15:54:49-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T15:56:46-04:00 "When Great Trees Fall" by Maya Angelou, contributed by Ella Eisenberg (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T15:56:46-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T16:10:21-04:00 "Grösse, Glühende Wölbung" by Paul Celan, contributed by Lars Hornburg (2021) 3 plain 2021-04-25T12:16:37-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T16:20:34-04:00 "Dad Poem" by Joshua Bennett, contributed by Libby Tseng (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T16:20:34-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T20:40:01-04:00 "I Have No Choice But To Keep Looking" by Jennifer Percy, contributed by Andrew Wang (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T20:40:01-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T20:48:37-04:00 "To An Athlete Dying Young" by A.E. Housman, contributed by Kathleen Coleman (Course Head, 2021) 1 plain 2021-04-24T20:48:37-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T18:52:26-04:00 "Portrait" (2019) and "empty words inspire" (2021), by and contributed by Mai Kim Nguyen (2021) 4 plain 2021-04-24T19:14:28-04:00
- 1 2021-04-24T20:37:40-04:00 The ending of "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien, contributed by MG Prezioso (TF, 2021) 2 plain 2021-04-24T20:37:55-04:00
- 1 2021-04-26T13:07:42-04:00 "Ginny Stopped Dancing" by Jeanne Guillemin, contributed by Matthew Meselson (2021) 1 plain 2021-04-26T13:07:42-04:00
- 1 2024-01-15T12:31:48-05:00 “Funeral Blues” by W.H. Auden, contributed by Eliot Cowan (2022) 2 plain 2024-01-15T12:33:02-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T14:18:56-05:00 “Ho sceso, dandoti il braccio, almeno un milione di scale” by Eugenio Montale, contributed by Daniel de Castro (2023) 3 plain 2024-01-15T14:22:39-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T15:31:17-05:00 "Dear Nana II" by Michaela Angemeer, contributed by Kiera Fetter (2023) 6 plain 2024-01-16T10:32:12-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T16:29:54-05:00 “Aubade” and “The Trees” by Philip Larkin, contributed by Fiker Girma (2023) 13 plain 2024-01-15T16:36:23-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T16:54:00-05:00 “You’ve Reached Sam” by Dustin Thao, contributed by Kathy Hua (2023) 3 plain 2024-01-15T17:23:04-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T18:26:58-05:00 "Change of Address" by Dónall Dempsey, contributed by Angela Mei (2023) 2 plain 2024-01-15T18:27:34-05:00
- 1 2024-01-15T18:47:08-05:00 “For A.L.” by Douglas Livingstone, contributed by Kathleen Coleman (Course Head, 2023) 1 plain 2024-01-15T18:47:08-05:00
- 1 2024-01-16T10:42:13-05:00 “Canzone” by W.H. Auden, contributed by Will Edwards (TF, 2023) 3 plain 2024-01-16T10:42:56-05:00
- 1 2024-01-16T19:59:31-05:00 "Shaving" by Richard Blanco, contributed by Wesley Wang (2023) 3 plain 2024-01-16T19:59:55-05:00
- 1 2024-01-16T20:12:03-05:00 “On the Death of the Beloved” by John O’Donohue, contributed by Abigail Wright (2023) 5 plain 2024-01-16T20:13:18-05:00
- 1 2024-01-19T12:14:49-05:00 "I am a Survivor of a Suicide Loss" (poet unknown), contributed by Matthew Myslenski (2023) 2 plain 2024-01-19T14:37:46-05:00
- 1 2025-03-17T18:40:30-04:00 "Is this seat taken?" by Jessica Ardis, contributed by William Ma (2025) 1 plain 2025-03-17T18:40:30-04:00
- 1 2025-03-20T23:08:55-04:00 “What Came to Me” by Jane Kenyon, contributed by Melany Hirsch (2025) 1 plain 2025-03-20T23:08:55-04:00
- 1 2025-05-16T16:03:06-04:00 "Big Cat, Little Cat" by Elisha Cooper, contributed by Jason Kleehammer (2025) 4 plain 2025-05-19T10:13:48-04:00
- 1 2025-06-27T14:21:48-04:00 "At the Mouth of the River of Bees" by Kij Johnson, contributed by Wency Suo (2025) 1 plain 2025-06-27T14:21:48-04:00
- 1 2025-06-27T14:25:36-04:00 "If It's Just a Game" by Sandile Msane, contributed by AJ Lopez (2025) 1 plain 2025-06-27T14:25:36-04:00
- 1 2025-06-27T14:38:55-04:00 Three Poems, contributed by Rodrick Shumba (2025) 3 plain 2025-06-27T15:02:15-04:00
- 1 2025-06-30T16:30:25-04:00 “I Cannot Forget” by Alexander Kimel, contributed by Marcel Ramos (2025) 1 plain 2025-06-30T16:30:25-04:00
- 1 2025-06-30T16:41:58-04:00 “Miners,” by Zdenka Višković Vukić, contributed by Dino Perusko (2025) 1 plain 2025-06-30T16:41:58-04:00
- 1 2025-06-30T19:59:22-04:00 "On Loss and Regret" by André Aciman, contributed by Samara Choudhury (2025) 3 plain 2025-06-30T19:59:48-04:00
- 1 2025-07-06T20:31:19-04:00 “Mama Never Forgets Her Birds” by Emily Dickinson, contributed by Hannah Nguyen (2025) 1 plain 2025-07-06T20:31:19-04:00
- 1 2025-07-06T22:52:01-04:00 “Elegy Of Fortinbras” Zbigniew Herbert (trans. Czeslaw Milosz and Peter Dale Scott) for C.M., contributed by by Kasie Leung (2025) 1 plain 2025-07-06T22:52:01-04:00
- 1 2025-07-07T22:43:28-04:00 "emptiness isn’t intangible like they say, is it?" by Nishi Patel, contributed by Nishi Patel (2025) 1 plain 2025-07-07T22:43:28-04:00
This page references:
- 1 2021-04-24T15:56:24-04:00 "When Great Trees Fall" by Maya Angelou 1 plain 2021-04-24T15:56:24-04:00